Ryanair told to fill 'unpaid-for' seats at emergency exits

[DUBLINFLYER]

RYANAIR has been told that passengers must sit beside emergency exits -- even if they haven't paid the €10 charged by the airline for the seats, which have more leg room.
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) says the seats must have a passenger sitting in them at all times to open the safety doors in case of an emergency.
Having nobody beside the exits could result in an "inadequate level of safety" and "hinder or delay" evacuation, the air safety chiefs said.
Ryanair and other airlines charge passengers extra to sit on these seats, but the IAA was worried the budget airline was leaving the seats vacant if no customers paid the charge.
It has now directed the airline to change its policy.
"They have to make sure the seats are occupied, whether they are paid for or not," an IAA spokeswoman said.
A letter from IAA, sent to other European airline regulators and the European Commission, says it has no objection to the extra €10 -- but does not want the seats left empty.
And it has now directed Ryanair to have people in the emergency aisles at all times, meaning some passengers could get a more comfortable seat without forking out €10, if the seats haven't already been taken.
The letter, seen by the Irish Independent, says: "An Irish air operator introduced a procedure which does not permit passengers to occupy certain seats if an extra charge is not paid".
Not allowing people in the seats "resulted on occasions in seats at overwing emergency exits (self help) being left unmanned for taxi, take off and landing. The authority has identified this as a problem resulting in an inadequate level of safety that can hinder or delay the passenger evacuation process in the event of an emergency."
Emergency exit seats are usually in the first four rows and in the middle of a plane. The seats are popular because they offer more leg room. Because of the IAA's ruling, Ryanair said it will change its rules. Stephen McNamara, the airline's spokesman, said: "We are revising our boarding procedures and briefing our crews at all bases to comply with this requirement from June 1, 2012".

WILL THE FAA TAKE SIMILAR ACTION?

 

[scoreboardII]

what if the plane flies empty, who mans the exists overwing?

This is a BS interpretation, you do not need seats in exit rows filled, they are certified to evacuate in just this situation.

 

[Mamma]

I think it's a good idea to have someone in the exit row.

 

[banger]

We charge extra for those seats on the BUS at JB and we often go with nobody sitting in them when the loads are low.

 

[Dumb Pilot]

The problem that I see is not that there is a person in the emergency exit or not, it is that the passenger briefing doesn't include the operation of the emergency exits, it is on the cards but it isn't part of the instructional video,(some airlines might have it, but most don't) if you examine the passenger evacuations in recent memory for example, they all have an instance where the emergency door was left inside the cabin partially blocking the acces, to me another equipment that will significantly increase the chances of survival would be smoke hoods for all the seats, statistically more people succumb to smoke inhalation than those that drown in a crash. As a matter of fact, the improper briefing of passengers has caused people to drown because they have inflated the life vests while still inside the A/C, I think the industry can do a lot better job at the passenger briefing, we can certainly learn something from the amusement parks, while you are waiting to get on the ride, you are bombarded by instructional videos in case of an emergency, I think the industry should adopt that in the waiting area at the gates, something more as a matter of fact, not some blonde with surgically enhanced lips waggin her finger at you.

 

[CRAWDADDY]

That's even dumber than SWA policy. For years the nice gate agents at Southwest used to give my freakishly tall son preboarding so he could grab an exit row.

Not now, "if you preboard you can't sit in an exit row."

Only highlights the absurdity of preboarding. How about these conditions for preboarding: If you preboard, you are not allowed carry on baggage. If you preboard, you must remain seated until everyone else has exited the plane.

 

[DUBLINFLYER]

SWA does not allow preboarders to sit in the exit rows, if you want to sit there buy a business class ticket and try to get A1 - A4 as long as it is starting at that airport

 

[Sluggo_63]

SWA does not allow preboarders to sit in the exit rows, if you want to sit there buy a business class ticket and try to get A1 - A4 as long as it is starting at that airport

I didn't realize SWA now had business class seats. Thanks.

 

[DUBLINFLYER]

you can book a "business select" ticket which guarantees you “A1 thru A15” boarding number, if your diligent and want that exit row check in 24 hours in advance and if you on the button you will get A1

 

[Sluggo_63]

you can book a "business select" ticket which guarantees you “A1 thru A15” boarding number, if your diligent and want that exit row check in 24 hours in advance and if you on the button you will get A1

"Business select" is much different than "business class." If you're diligent, and want that exit row, check in 24 hours in advance, and hope that none of the people on your through flight decide to get up and move into an exit row, then your A1 gets you a non-exit row aisle.